SketchUp 2015 is out

SketchUp 2015’s new Rotated Rectangle tool, demonstrated in a video from training site MasterSketchUp.com. As well as new drawing tools, the release makes SketchUp, Layout and the Ruby API 64-bit applications.

Trimble has released SketchUp 2015, the latest update to the architectural modelling software, making both SketchUp and LayOut 64-bit apps, and removing the need to buy separate licences for Windows and Mac.

64-bit support and performance updates The biggest change this time round is that both SketchUp and LayOut, the 2D drawing and documentation toolset included in the Pro version of the software, are now 64-bit applications, as is the Ruby API.

The software also now badges up ‘Fast Styles’ – viewport display styles that render primarily through the GPU, and which therefore improve display performance on lower-powered machines.

New drawing tools, new IFC file importer Other than that, Rotated Rectangle (shown in the video above) is now a native drawing tool rather than an extension; and there is a self-explanatory new 3 Point Arc tool.

In the Pro edition, options for working with BIM data has also been extended with a new importer for IFC files. There are also a number of smaller updates and bugfixes, which you can find via the link below.

Pricing and availability SketchUp 2015 is available for Windows and Mac OS X. The Pro version costs $590; the Make edition is free. Both single and network licences are now platform-independent, rather than Windows or Mac-specific.